Flooding at Saint Anne's sends ER ambulance patients to Charlton

Saturday

Aug 11, 2012 at 12:01 AMAug 11, 2012 at 6:27 AM

FALL RIVER — Flooding in the Saint Anne's Hospital emergency room Friday caused ambulance patients to be diverted to Charlton Memorial Hospital. A total of 18 patients already at the ER were moved to a surgery center upstairs, according to Saint Anne's spokeswoman Anne Ferreira.

ANIKA CLARK

FALL RIVER — Flooding in the Saint Anne's Hospital emergency room Friday caused ambulance patients to be diverted to Charlton Memorial Hospital. A total of 18 patients already at the ER were moved to a surgery center upstairs, according to Saint Anne's spokeswoman Anne Ferreira.

The flooding started at the height of Friday's rain, when two storm drains overflowed, Ferreira said. One sent water into the ER, whereas the second directed water into the hospital's front entrance.

The flooding spanned a "good part" of the hospital's ground floor, saddling the radiology area with one to two inches of water and the ER with six to 12 inches, she said.

"They never lost power," Ferreira said, and medical staff moved patients upstairs within five minutes.

None of these patients were critically ill, she said, and walk-in ER patients would receive preliminary medical screenings on-site.

Stephanie Poyant, a spokeswoman for Charlton parent Southcoast Health System, said Friday that officials were assessing hospital staffing levels and would add personnel as needed. She said Southcoast officials were "very confident" they'd be able to assist in any way needed throughout the night.

"These types of situations are the types ... that we prepare for and plan for on a regular basis throughout the year," she said. "We have been working very closely with Saint Anne's — as they would if the situation was reversed."

By Friday night, most of the water had been cleared, according to Ferreira. She said the ER would likely open this morning, after X-Ray and Computerized tomography (CT-scan) functions resume and once staff was finished with cleaning and work to ensure air quality and infection control. Charlton is about two miles from Saint Anne's according to Ferreira, who said her hospital typically receives more than 20 ER patients by ambulance during a 24-hour period.

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